Most printed circuit boards (PCBs) are constructed of a material like the well-known FR4 material, which has the advantage of being relatively economical to manufacture. FR4 is epoxy-based, with reinforcing glass fibers embedded in the epoxy.
One potential disadvantage of PCBs formed of FR4 is that such boards may not be suitable for implementation of high speed communication links that are expected to come into use in the near future. For example, for signaling in the 5 to 10 Gigabit per second (Gbs) range, or higher, the relatively high dielectric loss that would be occasioned by the FR4 material may make such signaling speeds impractical via traces on an FR4 PCB. It may be contemplated to construct PCBs of alternative materials that provide less dielectric loss, but such alternative materials tend to be quite expensive.
One of the present inventors, and another individual, have proposed that high-speed signaling paths be provided with flexible conductive cables (conventionally, and hereinafter, referred to as “flex cables”). Flex cables can be manufactured economically and of low-loss material. The present inventors now propose techniques to promote convenient assembly of electronic equipment in which flex cables are used to provide high-speed signaling paths.